These flavorful Veggie Spring Rolls are packed with healthy vegetables and fried to a crispy, golden brown. They make a delectable appetizer or perfect addition to Asian-inspired meals. They are easy to make, albeit a bit time-consuming.
These Veggie Spring Rolls freeze beautifully. I like to keep a supply in my freezer for those times when I need a perfect addition to an Asian-inspired meal.
Spring Rolls versus Egg Rolls
In some ways, spring rolls and egg rolls are similar. However a key difference between spring rolls and egg rolls is the wrapper that is used.
Spring roll wrappers are quite thin and are made primarily with flour and water. Egg roll wrappers are thicker and are made with flour and eggs, similar to pasta dough.
When fried, spring rolls have a smooth, extra crispy exterior that tends to shatter when bitten into. The thicker egg roll wrapper produces lots of little blisters on the surface when fried. While egg rolls are crispy, they tend to be more chewer than spring rolls.
The filling for spring rolls and egg rolls is similar. Both contain shredded vegetables. While meat or seafood can be added to spring rolls, egg rolls typically do contain some form of meat or seafood.
Ingredients for Veggie Spring Rolls
The ingredient list for Veggie Spring Rolls might seem a bit long. However, there are only several actual categories.
The Veggies: A lot of different veggies can be used in spring rolls. My choice includes cabbage, onion, celery, carrots, fresh ginger, fresh garlic and fresh bean sprouts.
The Sauce: For the sauce, I like to use soy sauce, Hoisin sauce and Sriracha hot chili sauce.
The Seasonings: The seasonings are quite simple – salt, pepper and ground ginger. I know that I also use fresh grated ginger. However, the ground ginger adds a little something else to the taste.
The Oil: I typically use a small amount of Peanut oil to stir fry the veggies and also use Peanut oil to actually fry the spring rolls.
The Wrappers: These wouldn’t be spring rolls without spring roll wrappers.
Preparing the Ingredients
The actual preparation of the ingredients was pretty simple.
First, I made the sauce by mixing together the soy sauce, Hoisin sauce and Sriracha sauce. I set this aside for later use.
Next, I used my food processor fitted with the large shredding disc to shred the cabbage, onion, celery and carrots.
That’s the extent of the prep with the food processor doing most of the work!
Making the Filling for the Spring Rolls
At this point, I set my Wok over medium-high heat. I added a tablespoon of peanut oil to the Wok and dumped in the vegetables from the bowl of the food processor. I also added grated ginger and minced garlic.
I stirred the mixture to combine everything and cooked the vegetables, stirring frequently for about 20 minutes until they were tender.
Then I added the bean sprouts. I stirred the mixture and cooked it for several minutes longer.
Finally I added the sauce mixture, salt, pepper, and ground ginger to the cooked vegetables. I continued cooking the filling for another minute or so until everything was well combined.
As the vegetables cooked, they gave off a fair amount of liquid. I knew from experience that excess liquid in the vegetables equates to soggy spring rolls. Therefore, I needed to remove the excess liquid.
To remove this excess liquid, I transferred the spring roll filling to a colander set over a large bowl, and pressed the filling with the back of a large spoon. I ended up with over ½-cup of the liquid.
Wrapping the Spring Rolls
To finish the Veggie Spring Rolls, I rolled them as follows: (1) With the spring roll wrapper point facing me, I placed 2 Tablespoons of the filling in the bottom third (Photo 1); (2) I folded the point facing me towards the center, covering the filling (Photo 2);
(3) I brought the two sides towards the center, like an envelope (Photo 3); and (4) rolled the spring roll towards the remaining point, sealing it with a dab of water on the point (Photo 4).
I made sure that I kept the spring roll wrappers and spring rolls covered with a damp paper towel to ensure that they didn’t dry out.
I placed the spring rolls on a parchment lined baking sheet, knowing that what I didn’t use would freeze beautifully.
Frying the Spring Rolls
I added about 2 inches of peanut oil to my Wok. Then, I heated the oil over medium-high heat to 375°F.
I added the four spring rolls that we were going to have for dinner to the heated oil and fried them until they were golden brown on all sides. This took about 5 minutes.
I drained the veggie spring rolls on a paper towel lined plate and let them cool a bit before serving.
The Veggie Spring Rolls were absolutely delicious. In fact, the Master Taste Tester commented that they were the best he had ever had!
As an added bonus, I have 16 more of these delectable morsels in the freezer ready at a moment’s notice. Yum!
Frequently Asked Question
If you don’t have a Wok, you can use a large skillet to cook the filling for the spring rolls. You could also use a skillet to fry the spring rolls.
The spring roll mixture is quite versatile. Feel free to add ground pork, finely chopped chicken or finely chopped shrimp to the mixture.
The only place that I’ve been able to find spring roll wrappers is in the frozen food section of an Asian supermarket. At least where I live, the spring roll wrappers are available in all Asian supermarkets that I’ve visited.
Feel free to substitute egg roll wrappers if you can’t find spring roll wrappers or would prefer to use egg roll wrappers. The filling will be just as delicious. The outside texture, however, will not be quite as crispy as with spring roll wrappers.
If you’re interested in some more Asian inspired veggie dishes check out my Vegetable Lo Mein or the Master Taste Tester’s Stir Fry.
I first blogged about these amazing Veggie Spring Rolls on July 22, 2016. Since then, these have been a staple in my house.
This repost includes updated photographs and text. The recipe, however, is unchanged.
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Veggie Spring Rolls
Ingredients
- 3 Tablespoons soy sauce (See Tip 1)
- 1 Tablespoon Hoisin sauce
- ½ teaspoon Sriracha hot chili sauce (optional – See Tip 2)
- 1 small head cabbage, shredded (About 1 ½ pounds) (See Tip 3)
- 2 large carrots, peeled and shredded (See Tip 3)
- 4 stalks celery, shredded (See Tip 3)
- 1 large onion (9 to 10 ounces), peeled and shredded (See Tip 3)
- 1 Tablespoon grated fresh ginger
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- 2 cups fresh bean sprouts
- 1 teaspoon Kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- 1 package spring roll wrappers (See Tip 4)
- Peanut oil (See Tip 5)
Instructions
- Combine soy sauce, Hoisin sauce, and Sriracha sauce in a small bowl; set aside.
- Heat 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil over medium high heat in Wok or large skillet. Add the cabbage, carrots, celery, onion, grated ginger, and garlic; cook until the cabbage is transparent, about 20 minutes.
- Add bean sprouts; cook for 2 minutes.
- Add the soy sauce mixture; stir to combine. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and ground ginger. Cook 2 additional minutes.
- Place in colander; drain, pressing excess liquid from filing with the back of a large spoon.
- To assemble: Place a spring roll wrapper on flat surface with point toward you. Place 2 Tablespoons of the filling in bottom third of the wrapper. Fold the bottom point toward the center; then fold the left and right point toward the center, like an envelope. Roll towards the top point. Seal the edge with water. Repeat with remaining spring roll wrappers and filling. Cover unused spring roll wrappers and completed spring rolls with damp paper towel to ensure that they do not dry out.
- To Cook: Place 2 inches of vegetable oil in a Wok or large skillet. Heat over medium high heat to 375°F. Add 4 spring rolls at a time to the hot oil; cook, turning occasionally until golden brown on all sides, about 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels and serve. Yield: 20 spring rolls. (See Tip 6)
Chula’s Expert Tips
- I used low sodium soy sauce.
- You can substitute any hot sauce for the Sriracha sauce or leave it out altogether. It’s a matter of taste.
- I shredded the vegetables in my food processor using the large shredding disc.
- I purchased the spring roll wrappers at an Asian food market. I’ve never seen them in a regular grocery store. In a pinch, you could use egg roll wrappers in place of the spring roll wrappers if you can’t find them. The outside texture will be different, but they will still be delicious.
- I like to use Peanut oil because of its high smoke point. You could also use regular vegetable oil. I would, however, recommend against using olive oil because of its low smoke point.
- I like to freeze the spring rolls that I’m not cooking in a single layer on parchment paper. Once the spring rolls are frozen, I store them in the freezer in a Ziploc bag.
Love Chinese food but never tried to cook it. Your instructions were so easy to follow – photos of the folding process were very helpful. I will definitely try these. As a kid in the ’50’s loved my Mom’s Chop Suey – now it’s not even on the menu at Restaurants. Do you have a recipe for home cooks?
Hi Eileen,
I love Chinese food as well, not only for the taste but also for the ease of making it. Unfortunately, I don’t have a recipe for Chop Suey, but you might be interested in one of these recipes (which I often make but haven’t blogged about!). They are similar to Chop Suey: Beef and Broccoli Stir Fry; Beef and Vegetable Stir Fry; Stir Fry Chicken and Broccoli; Stir Fry Chicken and Snow Peas. Or you might try this Veggie Stir Fry which is amazing. You could easily add some thinly sliced chicken or pork to this. Sorry I couldn’t be more helpful.
Chula